Match Preview - LAFC
Game Info
Kickoff: 9:40pm CT
Watch: Apple TV
Location: BMO Stadium - Los Angeles, CA
All-Time H2H Record
Austin FC has a 4W-3D-9L all-time record against LAFC.
These two teams met back in March and played to a scoreless draw.
The most memorable matchup between these two clubs for the Verde faithful is the August 2022 fixture at Q2 Stadium. The two teams were battling at the top of the Western Conference table and Austin FC was able to come away with a dominant 4-1 victory in front of their home fans.
LAFC Recent Form
LAFC has been a mainstay at the top of the Western Conference since their arrival in MLS in 2018. Team success was not only immediate, but has remained consistent for Los Angeles. The team won the Supporters’ Shield in 2019 and has qualified for the playoffs in seven of their eight seasons thus far. The Black and Gold’s most triumphant season was in 2022, when they secured another Supporters’ Shield and captured the MLS Cup in a thrilling match against future Austin FC head coach Jim Curtin and the Philadelphia Union.
Sitting in sixth place in the Western Conference with 42 points from their 29 games would be a fine spot for many teams in this league. But for a LAFC franchise with championship aspirations every season, it is not. After the scheduled departure of Steve Cherundolo at the conclusion of last season, the club hired Marc Dos Santos as his replacement. Dos Santos, who served as an assistant coach under Cherundolo and as head coach of the Vancouver Whitecaps from 2018-2021 was dismissed following a 1-0 loss to FC Dallas last month.
General manager John Thorrington felt the pressure from his (rather spoiled) fan base and made the switch to Xavi Tamarit as interim for the remainder of this season. Tamarit is a 44-year old Spanish national with experience in some of the best leagues in the world, including coaching stints in the English Premier League and La Liga. He is described as a tactician who has an overall curious and creative mind for the game. Tamarit just coached his first game for LAFC this past weekend, a 1-1 draw with Vancouver at BMO Stadium.
Given their annual expecations it’s been a trying season for LAFC, who were eliminated from both CONCACAF Champions Cup and Leagues Cup earlier than they’d have liked and are currently on a four game winless streak in league play. LAFC lacked an identity under Dos Santos, which is abnormal for a that has largely dominated their competition since their inception.
Under Cherundolo, LAFC was about as aggressive of a counter-attacking opponent as you could face in this league, a club that was content to allow their opponents to possess the ball before pouncing on turnovers and transitioning to their star-studded attacking fronts that have become synonymous with the Black and Gold colors in MLS.
Despite having arguably the most talented 1-2 offensive punch on paper, with Denis Bouanga and Heung-Min Son up top, LAFC is sitting on 44 goals heading into their clash with Austin FC. That figure puts them out of top five in the West in terms of scoring, though if you’re reading this you know well that any Austin fan would love to be averaging 1.5 goals per match at the moment. But for a team with an estimated roster value north of $60 million, it hasn’t been good enough.
This team isn’t underperforming their underlying numbers either, they are slightly above expectation. The team’s 42.6 xG on the year plants them in the bottom half of MLS. In fact, LAFC is in the bottom half in many of the most important indicators for offensive production, including shots on target per match (4.6), big chances created (65), set piece goals (5), and touches in the opponent box (694). All of this points to a pedestrian offense rather than some lengthy underperformance, particularly when it comes to some of the Black and Gold juggernauts of years past.
LAFC was active in the summer transfer window, particularly with youth players. They brought in Sergio Vasquez, a defensive midfielder from Orense, on a U22 deal. They also signed Armindo Sieb, a versatile attacking player from Bayern Munchen in Germany and Leo Walta from Swansea, who can play multiple attacking positions. Both of those players arrived on TAM deals. They also signed Thayllon Roberth from Avai FC in Brazil’s Serie B in Brazil to a U22 initiative deal.
Interim coach Tamarit will be assessing the new additions to bolster what may be the most “mid” version of LAFC that Austin FC fans have ever seen. Yet, the star power remains. It shouldn’t be shocking to see Bouanga and Son flip a switch and finish this regular season strong as LAFC looks to climb the Western Conference standings in the push to the postseason.
Austin FC Recent Form
While they may not be completely out of it, Austin’s playoff chances are officially on life support after dropping another three points at Q2 Stadium last weekend. With just six games remaining in the regular season, the climb towards a Wild Card spot remains steep.
If you were able to check out Episode 341, then you’re well aware that losing to Nashville (a team on a historic pace 29 games into the season) shouldn’t have come as much of a surprise. But it’s fair to say that the manner in which the Verde and Black were dismantled should raise some alarm bells.
It was a little over a month ago that we saw Austin FC go toe-to-toe with first place Vancouver and come out with a victory. That result, as far-fetched as it still seems, proved that with the right amount of luck, this thin Austin roster could compete with the blue chips of the league on a good day. While it would make sense to draw from that victory for some confidence, Nashville served us up a big ole piece of humble pie on Saturday night.
Austin did not look like it belonged in the same league as Nashville and the stats support that assertion. While the final scoreline of 4-1 was brutal enough, the underlying stats are much more telling when it comes to how leaky Austin is at the back.
According to the American Soccer Analysis model, Nashville’s 4.81 expected goals were the most from any away team since these figures started being tracked 13 years ago. The 4.81 xG also set the high mark for Nashville as a franchise, and are the sixth most of any MLS game in the ASA database.
For the Verde and Black, this was a sobering dose of reality. It was as clear as it’s been all season that there are levels to this league, and Austin is not even eavesdropping on a conversation about being one of the better teams at the moment.
Again, there is no shame in losing to a Nashville side that has only lost three games all season long, but there should at least be some shame in being outclassed in every phase of the game and thoroughly dominated at home. A loss like this, paired with the ongoing turmoil of playing at Q2 Stadium, could snowball into a season-ending poor run of form for ATX.
As bad as the loss was, it’s still just one game. And on a short week, the players and coaches will have an opportunity to bounce back against a demonstrably beatable LAFC team. The challenge of putting the loss to Nashville in the rearview and moving forward will be the ultimate test of this roster’s resiliency.
If you’re able to find three points in either of these next two games (Vancouver Whitecaps at Q2 Stadium on 10/17), then we can take the playoff chances off life support. Until then, Austin must fight with everything they have to keep this dream alive.
Injury Report
This is an estimate until the league releases official injury reports on Tuesday afternoon.
ATX:
Žan Kolmanič (Out - Hamstring)
LAFC:
Jeremy Ebobisse (Questionable - Leg)
Timothy Tillman (Questionable - Leg)
Cabral Carter (Questionable - Arm)
LAFC Players to Watch
Armindo Sieb - Bouanga and Son are the obvious choices, but Sieb might be the X-Factor for LAFC as they close out the 2026 season. The departure of David Martinez has left a hole in LAFC’s offense, as Martinez’s inclusion next to the two all-stars would put a stranglehold on opposing defenses. The young Venezuelan fetched about $7.5 million from FC Midtjylland for good reason. His impact has been missed, but that’s where the addition of Sieb comes in. While they don’t share the exact same positions, Sieb will be called upon to upgrade LAFC’s play making as well as creating chances for Bouanga and Son ahead of him in Tamarit’s 4-4-2. Sieb has a single goal in his 325 minutes thus far since arriving from Bayern Munich and may still be acclimating to his new surroundings, but if Tamarit can find a way to “unlock” him, then it could be another LAFC heist to have grabbed the former German Youth National Player for just about $500,000.
Austin FC Keys to the Game
Bounce Back - Oh, so you fell down from a guy pushing you down on the ground real hard? Okay. Get up.
Instagram memes aside, Austin got their ass whooped on Saturday. It happens. It happens in soccer and it happens in life. There’s no replaying that game, so now it becomes all about the response. Is Austin FC able to collectively dust themselves off and put forth a quality 90 minutes against a superior club in their house? That’s the burning question on Wednesday night. The unbeaten streak is over and one goal remains, to find a way into the playoffs. Since the embarrassing losses to Houston and Colorado two months ago, Austin has shown resiliency, fight, and grit at almost every turn. They’ll have another chance to do just that come Wednesday night.
Predictions
ZG - 2-0 LAFC
E - 0-0 Draw
